Google Has A Defined-Command Language Built Into Its Search Engine…

A discovery I made completely by accident: Google has built-in a defined command language in their search engine, much like commands in DOS, UNIX, or an Alcatel/DSC 600E long distance voice switch, or similar to TL1 commands in a lot of telecomm gear. Examples: ” translate: english to spanish; thursday” , and “Define: automobile” .

The placing of the colons and semicolons is important, just as it is in a TL1 command. If you put either of those commands in a Google search box without the quotation remarks, you will get either the English-to-Spanish translation of “Thursday,” or the English definition of “automobile.”

I’m thinking you might be able to define words in another language as well by using a semicolon to specify the language of the word you need defined. Maybe like “Define: Portuguese;  "barco” or something like that.

Alternatively instead of the English word “Define” as the command, maybe the Portuguese word of the same meaning as the command. So far, these are the only two commands I have discovered, but I wonder what else is hiding under Google’s hood…


Here’s another set of commands called “search operators”: https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2466433

Weather: Search weather to see the weather in your location or add a city name, like weather seattle, to find weather for a certain place.

Dictionary: Put define in front of any word to see its definition.

Calculations: Enter a math equation like 3*9123, or solve complex graphing equations.

Unit conversions: Enter any conversion, like 3 dollars in euros.

Sports: Search for the name of your team to see a schedule, game scores and more.

Quick facts: Search for the name of a celebrity, location, movie, or song to find related information.

Dan
 
Dan Stafford

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